UPDATE | Akron girl's plea to find missing dog is answered

AKRON, Ohio -- A young girl’s Facebook plea to find her lost dog tugged at hearts around the world.

“If you found this white missing dog, please bring him home,” the girl cries in the brief video while holding up a picture of her pet, Buddy.

Her plea was answered. Her father Matt Wallace tells WKYC Saturday morning that they found Buddy. He says numerous tips came in after Friday's news coverage, which led them to Buddy. He did not say where Buddy was found.

Background

Her mother, Laura Wallace, posted the video on Facebook shortly before 9 p.m. Wednesday. It quickly took social media by storm with nearly 169,000 shares and 5.284 million video views by 10:45 a.m. Friday.

“Buddy is still missing, and my kids are missing him like crazy!” Wallace wrote in the Facebook post. “Madison wanted to make a video in hopes that someone will bring him home. Please, if you have him or know where he is bring him home.”

According to Wallace, Buddy went missing from North Akron off of Glenwood Avenue near Route 8. Buddy is not chipped and wasn’t wearing his collar when he went missing.

“Thank you all for your help, love, and support. It means more then we could ever say!”

Wallace visited the Summit County Animal Control Facility on Friday afternoon to check whether Buddy was found.

Madison, 5, of Akron spent the afternoon searching for her missing dog. Her emotional plea on Facebook has gained a lot of attention. @wkycpic.twitter.com/6s894kVqnT

But this isn't the first time someone has lost a pet -- and it's not the first time social media has been used to make an impact.

More than 15,000 Facebook users are members of the group "Summit County Lost and Found Pets." The page is used by local residents to track down missing animals in the area, reuniting families as quickly as possible with their pets.

"It goes out to everybody," said Pam Schlumberger, one of the administrators of the page. "It's amazing how many animals get back home."

Schlumberger joined the group about three years ago when she began looking for her two missing dogs. While she has helped connect families to their missing pets, she is still searching for her own.